Chromatograph device

Abstract

A vial feed device is equipped with a feed arm, which is positioned between a vial tray and an oven and below either of them and having a feeding housing unit and a cooling housing unit, and a vial up-and-down moving mechanism for placing and removing vials in and from vial tray and oven. Feed arm is rotationally driven by a drive motor to move a feeding housing unit, a cooling housing unit and up-and-down moving mechanism toward vial tray or oven. High-temperature vials in oven are housed in cooling housing unit until cooling time T elapses. After cooling time T elapses, cooling housing unit is moved to a lower part of vial tray by feed arm, to be returned to vial tray by up-and-down moving mechanism.

What is claimed is: 
     
       1. A chromatograph device comprising:
 a specimen container tray for holding a plurality of specimen containers; 
 a heating device for housing and heating the specimen containers; and 
 a container-feeding device for transporting the specimen containers from the specimen container tray to the heating device and vice versa; 
 wherein: 
 the container-feeding device comprises: 
 a feed arm having a flat arm structure, positioned lower than the specimen container tray or the heating device to be moved between the two; 
 a cooling housing unit provided on the feed arm, for storing one of the specimen containers; 
 a first container moving unit provided to the feed arm, for lowering one of the specimen containers from the heating device into the cooling housing unit disposed below the heating device; 
 a second container moving unit provided to the feed arm, for raising the specimen container to the specimen containing tray from the cooling housing unit that is moved below the specimen containing tray by the feed arm; 
 a feeding housing unit provided on the feed arm adjacent to the cooling housing unit, for storing the specimen containers, wherein the second container movement unit moves one of the specimen containers from the specimen container tray to the feeding housing unit, and the feed arm is then moved to place the feeding housing unit below the heating device for the first container movement unit to raise the specimen container into the heating device; 
 a controller for controlling the first container moving unit, the feed arm, and the second container movement unit, wherein the controller controls the first container moving unit, the feed arm, and the second container movement unit so that the specimen containers are moved one by one from the cooling housing unit to the specimen container tray after the specimen containers that are stored in the cooling housing unit have cooled to a normal temperature. 
 
     
     
       2. The chromatograph device according to  claim 1  wherein the feed arm is positioned lower than either the specimen container tray or the heating device, the second container moving unit obtains the specimen container from a lower part of the heating device and moves the specimen container to the cooling housing unit, and the first container movement unit moves specimen container from a lower part of the specimen container tray to the specimen container tray. 
     
     
       3. The chromatograph device according to  claim 1 , wherein the feed arm further comprises a cooling device for cooling the specimen container that is stored in the cooling housing unit.